There's Fire
by McAbbyAddict
Summary: It's their 3 month anniversary, and McGee has a surprise planned. What could go wrong? Sequel to 'Where There's Smoke...'COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: Ok, this is a lot sooner than I was intending to write this as I only finished the original story this morning. But the writing bug bit badly while I was at work, and I wrote most of this in my head during a slow shift. F.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, etc etc. They all belong to Belisarius Productions. **

It was quiet in the bullpen. McGee had come in early to finish off some paperwork and the rest of the team hadn't arrived yet. It hadn't taken as long as he'd expected, so now he was sitting at his desk reflecting on the last few weeks.

It had taken a house fire, but Abby and Tim were finally together. That first week had been the happiest and most confusing of his life. He knew he'd remember it forever. And now it was three months later and their relationship just kept getting stronger. He put a hand to his pocket, just making sure that the small black velvet box was still there. He'd taken to carrying it on him since he got it back from the jewellers a week ago. He didn't want to risk Abby finding it. Tomorrow was their 3 month anniversary and he had his proposal all planned out.

Checking to make sure that no one was watching, he pulled the box out of his pocket. The ring inside had taken him weeks of searching to find. His beautiful Goth girlfriend was not your typical woman, so he'd wanted something unique. The ring was ornate but delicate, with a rose shaped setting that held a single diamond. The band was made of braided strands of rose and yellow gold. The ding of the elevator arriving made him look up. Hastily, he closed the box and swept it into his desk drawer. It was safe there for now, as long as he was at his desk. He was being paranoid, he knew, but as long as the box was on him or within his reach, he knew Abby wouldn't find it.

...

The arrival of the rest of the team made him realise it was time to get to work. They'd been working on a counter-terrorism op for the past week under the supervision of the Director, and today they were supposed to raid the premises of a suspected bomb factory. It was going to be a dangerous op, he knew that. He would have almost preferred to be up in MTAC coordinating feeds, but when the team went into the field, he had to be there. He had to have his partners' six.

They assembled in the squad room to hear the final briefing. This was a home grown terrorist group, and they were planning something. They went over the plans one more time, committing them to memory once more. This was to be a fairly silent raid, they were only expecting a maximum of two suspects in the house on the outskirts of Bethesda, and so only their team was involved. They detoured back to their desks to grab their badges and weapons. Hoping that no one else saw, McGee also scooped up the velvet box, tucking it in his pocket once more.

...

They made a textbook entry, Gibbs kicking in the front door with McGee right behind him, with Tony and Ziva coming through the back. Clearing each room as they moved through the house, they surprised their suspect in the back bedroom.

They had him cornered, guns trained on him. Slowly McGee advanced, knowing that Gibbs and Tony had him covered. He was closest; it would be easier for him to get the cuffs on this guy. He was almost within touching distance now. Slowly he holstered his SIG, reaching for handcuffs instead . Suddenly the suspect smirked. McGee's eyes widened in horror as he saw the black barrel of the gun. He dove to the side, knowing even as he did that it was too late, he was going to get hit. He felt the burn in his right shoulder as he crashed to the ground. Tony was quick, but Gibbs was quicker. He heard, dimly, the sound of the double taps echoing through the room, and struggled to sit up.

Gibbs looked over at his youngest agent and felt a stab of relief. 'Shoulder wound, painful but not lethal' he thought to himself. At point blank range, it could have been so much worse. McGee's sudden move had saved his life. Then he saw the trickle of blood become a torrent and rushed to his side. Shrugging quickly out of his windbreaker, he balled it up. Looking down at the stricken agent, he said "Sorry, McGee. This is going to hurt like hell". Swiftly, he bent and pressed it to the wound, trying to stop the bleeding

The burning in his shoulder became agony. As he lost consciousness, he heard Tony's voice on the radio "Agent down, I repeat agent down!"

...

Trying to keep enough pressure on the wound, Gibbs signalled to Tony to radio for help. McGee had passed out from the pain. He was losing a lot of blood, too much. Gibbs knew the bullet must have nicked an artery. The damn jacket wasn't helping; he couldn't get pressure in the right spot. Cursing, he threw it away. Watching where the blood welled from, in order to judge the correct place, he used the heel of his hand. That worked better, the blood stopped gushing and slowed to a steady flow. He might actually manage to keep him alive until the ambulance got here now.

Turning his head, he looked at Tony

"Got an ETA on that ambulance, DiNozzo?"

"They said 10 minutes, Boss. Coming straight from Bethesda"

He nodded, concentrating on keeping the bleeding to a minimum

"Damn it, McGee, don't you quit on me now" he demanded of his youngest agent. It seemed like an eternity, but finally he could hear the discordant noise of the sirens. He let the EMTS take over, watching as they quickly loaded him into the ambulance. He looked down, realising for the first time that his hands and shirt were covered in McGee's blood. He rinsed his hands under the kitchen tap. There wasn't much he could do for his shirt. He turned to find Tony and Ziva watching him, waiting for orders

"Tony, you're with me. Ziva, I need you to stay here and coordinate with the local LEOs, at least til Palmer gets here"

He didn't wait for their response, but headed straight to the car, Tony jogging along side him. He started the car and floored it away from the kerb, following the road the ambulance had taken. Pulling out his cell, he hit one of the speed dial buttons

"Autopsy"

"Ducky, is Abby there with you?"

"No, Jethro, I haven't seen her yet this morning" the elderly ME replied

"Need a favour, Duck. McGee's been shot and we're on our way to Bethesda. I need you to tell Abby and bring her to the hospital. Send Palmer to collect the body, Ziva is still there" he gave Ducky the address

"Right, we'll be there shortly. How bad is he, Jethro?"

"'It's only his shoulder, but he's lost a lot of blood Duck"

He broke the connection and sped up, weaving through traffic as fast as he could


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: My medical knowledge sucks, guys, so please ignore any mistakes I may have made. There will be more McAbby in the next chapter, I promise. F. **

They pulled up next to the emergency room with a jerk, leaving the car there and dashing inside. Flashing their badges, they pushed past the protesting nurse, moving swiftly down the hallway until they found him. He was ghostly pale, and the bed beneath his shoulder was stained red with blood. As they watched, a nurse hung another bag of blood on the IV pole to replace the empty one.

"Excuse me, but you can't be back here" a voice said from behind them. They turned to see a Navy lieutenant staring at them.

"That's my agent in there" Gibbs snarled

"You are?"

"Special Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo"

"Ok. They're about to take him up to surgery anyway. Stay here and as soon as they have news, they'll bring it to you" the lieutenant disappeared into the room where they were working on McGee, speaking to someone and gesturing towards them. He came back out in a moment.

"The bullet hit an artery in your agent's shoulder. Now, they've managed to stop the bleeding temporarily, but they're taking him upstairs now to surgery to make a permanent repair. Your agent"

"McGee" Tony supplied

"Agent McGee, thank you, has lost a lot of blood. If you'll follow me, I'll take you to where you can wait"

...

The lieutenant left them in a dingy and depressing room, furnished with hard plastic chairs, a coffee machine and a payphone. They settled into the uncomfortable chairs to wait, each lost in their own thoughts.

Tony was the first to break the quiet

"Hey, Boss? Why did he go for McGee? He could see you and I had the drop on him"

Gibbs sighed. He'd been turning the same question over in his mind, and had only come up with one answer

"Suicide by cop, Tony. He went for McGee precisely because we had him covered. He knew he wasn't getting away. McGee's just lucky he saw the damn gun"

They relapsed into silence for a few minutes, soon broken by the return of the lieutenant. He was carrying two small paper bags and a clipboard

"Agent DiNozzo?" he asked

Tony got up and went over to the lieutenant

"Yeah?"

"You're listed as one of Agent McGee's next of kin. If you'll sign here, I can release his personal effects to you"

He took the clipboard and signed where the lieutenant indicated, then took the bags. One had McGee's gun and badge, the other the rest of his things. He opened the second bag to check the contents

Gibbs signalled to the lieutenant

"Lieutenant, is there any way I could borrow some scrubs or something? McGee's girlfriend is on the way in, and I don't want her to see me covered in his blood" he explained. Over the lieutenant's shoulder, he saw a look of surprise on Tony's face at the bag contents. He turned his attention back to the lieutenant

"I'll see what I can do, sir"

Tony was a little shocked to see the small black box in with McGee's personal effects. He knew instantly what it must contain, and that his and Abby's anniversary was tomorrow. It didn't take much to put the two together

"Ah, hell Probie, you damn well better pull through this"

"What'd you find, Tony?" Gibbs' question startled him. He didn't realise he'd spoken out loud. He pulled the box out of the bag and held it up so Gibbs could see. Comprehension lit the older agent's face at the sight

"Boss, I gotta give his things to Abby when she gets here. I don't think Tim would want her to see this somehow" Gibbs nodded his agreement, watching as DiNozzo stuck the ring in his pocket.

The lieutenant entered the room again, handing Gibbs a small pile of green cloth

"There's a bathroom down the hall, sir" he told him, leaving again

Gibbs followed him out, turning down the hall to the bathroom. Moving quickly, he shed the blood stained clothes he was wearing and changed into the green surgical scrubs. He looked ridiculous, but he thought that was better than letting Abby see how much of Tim's blood he had on him

He heard voices coming from the waiting room as he headed back up the hall. Abby and Ducky must have arrived. He quickened his step

Abby was hugging DiNozzo, her face pale and tear stained. She turned at his entrance and rushed over to him

"Gibbs! How is he?" she sounded distraught.

"We don't really know yet, Abs. He's still in surgery" he explained "But the bullet hit him in the shoulder, so he should be just fine"

She nodded, wanting to believe him. Gibbs never lied to her

"How did it happen, Gibbs?"

He sighed. He hated having to explain how one of his agents got hurt; it felt like he'd failed to protect his team

"He was trying to cuff the guy, Abs. We had him covered, but he had a gun concealed on him somewhere" he paused, replaying McGee's frantic dive in his head "Tim tried to get out of the way, but he was too close"

Tears filled her eyes again at his explanation, so he pulled her into a hug

"He'll be ok, Abs. I promise"

Ziva arrived then, announcing that Palmer had collected the body and Balboa's team had taken over the scene. Vance must have mobilised them when he heard the "Agent down" call over the tactical radios they'd been wearing

Ducky shifted, as if he couldn't decide where he should be

"Autopsy can wait, Ducky. I already know what killed the bastard. Two double taps, straight to the heart" Gibbs told him

A doctor dressed in surgical greens came in a short while later. "Family of Agent McGee?" he asked. Everyone in the room nodded. "I really can only tell the next of kin" he said, looking at DiNozzo "That would be Agent DiNozzo and an Abigail Scuito?" he stumbled over the pronunciation of Abby's last name

"And me" spoke up an older gentleman in a bow tie "I'm Doctor Mallard, Agent McGee's physician"

He nodded, agreeing to that.

"If you'll follow me?" he led the three people out into the hallway

"I'm Captain Reilly, I've been working on Agent McGee" he told them

"How is he?" Abby asked, her voice strained

"We've repaired the damaged artery in his shoulder. We had to use an arterial graft from his leg to replace the damaged portion. He's in recovery now"

"What aren't you telling us, Doctor?" the question came from Ducky. Reilly hesitated before answering

"When Agent McGee came in, he had no measurable blood pressure. They gave him 12 units of blood to replace what he'd lost, which puts him at risk of losing his ability to clot. His heart never actually stopped, but with the amount of blood loss, at some point it must have been pumping air. I've put him in an induced coma for now, to give him time to heal. If all goes well, we'll bring him out of that tomorrow"

"Can we see him?" Abby broke in

"Soon. He's being transferred to ICU shortly, then he can have 2 visitors at a time, no more. Someone will come and get you once he's been transferred"

"Thank you, Doctor"

"He's a fit young man. He should pull through just fine" Reilly told them as he left.

Abby went back into the room to tell the rest of the team what they'd been told. Tony stopped Ducky from following her

"12 units is a lot of blood, isn't it Ducky?" he asked

"Yes, it is Anthony. The human body has around 6 litres of blood; 12 units is slightly more than that"

"You mean, he lost all of his blood?"

"That's right. Please don't tell Abigail this, but Timothy came very close to death today. If they hadn't managed to stop the bleeding..." he let the sentence hang

Wordlessly, they re-entered the waiting room.


	3. Chapter 3

"Oh, Abby, before I forget, they gave me McGee's things" Tony handed Abby the bag the lieutenant had given him before her arrival.

She looked in the bag and pulled out his cell phone

"Does anyone know if the hospital called his family?" she asked

"Well, they had us listed as next of kin, Abs. So I doubt it" Tony answered

"I was worried about that" she unlocked McGee's cell, scrolling through the contacts list

"Wait, you've met McGee's family?" Tony asked

"Tony, we live together; of course I've met them. They were in town last month, picking Sarah up at the start of college vacation"

"Has he met your family?"

"Sure, they came up and visited at the same time. We thought we'd do a whole meet the family thing" she found the number she was looking for and went to the payphone on the wall

"Sarah? It's Abby. I've got some bad news..."

...

Abby was scared. She'd tried her absolute best to stay calm and composed while she was talking to Tim's family; she didn't want to worry them any more than necessary; but her control was failing her. Hanging up the payphone, she found she had tears running down her face again. Her knees started to shake. Suddenly Gibbs was at her side, supporting her to a chair.

"He will be ok, Abs" he told her

She nodded, unable to speak through the bubble of panic that she'd been trying to deny ever since the doctor had updated them on Tim's condition. She knew how much blood he'd lost; how lucky he was to have made it this far. The thought of losing him was terrifying. It had taken her 7 years to realise how much she loved him; surely life wasn't so cruel as to only give her 3 months with him? She heard herself sob and gave herself a mental shake. She had to think positively. Tim needed her. She forced herself to recall the reassurances of Gibbs and the surgeon, clinging to them.

She wished they would hurry up and transfer Tim to ICU. She needed to see him so badly, to see that he was ok, he was going to make it.

She looked up as Captain Reilly entered the room again.

"They've taken Agent McGee to ICU; if you'll come with me?"

She jumped up and rushed to the doorway. Knowing the rest of the team was behind her, she followed the Captain down one floor and along a hallway to another waiting room.

"So that you're not alarmed, I'm just going to run through what your Agent is going to look like in there. He is in an induced coma; that makes it difficult for him to breathe on his own, so we have him on a ventilator. The ventilator is a precaution only; as he improves we'll remove it. You'll need to be careful of his shoulder; it needs to stay completely immobilised for the present, as does his right leg where we took the graft. That said, you can see him now. Strictly two visitors at a time."

Eager but scared to see Tim, Abby was glad when Gibbs followed her towards his room. She didn't want to do this alone. She paused in the doorway, aghast.

He was deathly pale, half lying, half sitting in the hospital bed. A tube snaked out of his mouth to the machine that was breathing for him, and IV lines were connected to his injured arm. His shoulder and one side of his chest was covered in bandages, and a bulge in the blanket showed that his right leg was the same.

She moved quickly to the side of his bed, laying a gentle kiss on Tim's cheek and taking his free hand. She smiled her thanks to Gibbs when he moved the visitors chair so she could sit down, not trusting herself to speak.

She sat like that for hours, dimly aware of the rest of the team coming in and out, reassuring themselves that Tim, her Timmy, was still alive. All her attention was on him, watching the slow rise and fall of his chest and the steady heart rate on the monitor beside him.

Gibbs shook her shoulder at one point, drawing her attention away for a few moments

"Abs, you should go home, get some rest"

"I'm staying here, Gibbs" she told him

"Abs-"

"I'm not leaving him" she shook her head stubbornly. She wouldn't be able to sleep if she went home to the apartment she shared with Timmy. Not while he lay here, broken and alone. She needed to be with him

And so she sat, leaving occasionally when the medical staff asked her to so they could tend to him. During one enforced absence, Captain Reilly found her and explained that they were going to start lightening the drugs that were keeping him sedated

"He is improving rapidly, Ms. Scuito. I'm upgrading his condition from grave to critical. As the heavy sedation starts to wear off, we should be able to remove the ventilator"

She spoke to him while they were alone, not knowing whether he could hear her. Inconsequential things for the most part, though she told him many times that she loved him and that he was going to be just fine

She came back into the room again after one more absence to find they'd replaced the tube she hated with an oxygen mask. The sight made her smile. He looked so much more like her Timmy now. As the room grew light, she found she was unable to keep her eyes open. She rested her head on the side of his bed, still holding his hand, unwilling to leave him.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So much for a short sequel; at this rate, this one will end up as long as the original story. Or end up as a series. **

**Thanks for the reviews, everyone. F.**

Blackness.

He'd wandered through it for an eternity, guided onwards by a glow on the horizon, first seen dimly but now as bright as the sun. He paused. Something was wrong. He swung his head, considering. Ahead, the glow promised warmth and peace. He was so cold. Behind him lay blackness... And Abby. Abby. Resolutely he turned his back on the glow and struggled back into the dark. The blackness was thick and syrupy, making it hard to move. He pushed onwards. He had to get back to Abby.

Another light on the horizon. This one was cold and white. He kept going as it got brighter. It became easier to move towards it. Slowly feeling returned; a throbbing ache in his shoulder and another, lesser one in his leg. There was something uncomfortable across his nose and cheeks; he tried to raise his hand to swipe it away and couldn't move his arm. Fear made him open his eyes; why couldn't he move his arm?

Suddenly it all came flooding back; the suspect, pulling a small pistol out of seemingly nowhere; the shot; the burning as the bullet caught his shoulder. He was in the hospital. He looked around.

Abby was fast asleep next to his bed, her head lying on an uncomfortable angle across the edge of the mattress, her hand lightly holding his. Her hair was a mess, one pigtail unbraided and straggly, her eyes were red and puffy even in sleep, and what remained of her mascara had left black streaks on her cheek. She'd never looked more beautiful to him. He gently squeezed her hand, wanting so badly to see her open her eyes and look at him. She shifted a little in her sleep, muttering something incomprehensible. He smiled a little; he'd never tell her, but he loved that she talked in her sleep. He squeezed her hand again. This time she woke, raising her head and looking at him in disbelief

"Hi" he tried to say, but it came out as a croak. He cleared his throat and tried again. Why was his throat sore?

"Timmy" the relief in her voice was palpable. She launched herself at him. Bracing for a characteristic Abby-hug, he caught her in his good arm, wrapping it around her waist like he'd never let her go. Face muffled against his chest, she was sobbing

"God Tim, I thought I'd lost you"

He wanted to reassure her that he wasn't that easy to kill, she wasn't going to lose him any time soon, but he couldn't force the words past the soreness in his throat

She shifted against him, reaching out and hitting the call button. A nurse came in, saw that he was awake and disappeared again, returning a few moments later with a doctor. She approached his bed and busied herself checking his temperature and blood pressure on his bad arm

"Ah, Agent McGee, you're awake. I'm Captain Reilly, I operated on your shoulder" he explained "How are you feeling?" McGee tried to answer, but all he got was more incomprehensible croaks. The doctor turned and asked the nurse to get some water "We had to put you on a ventilator overnight, Agent McGee. Your throat will probably be a little sore for a few days"

The nurse returned with a plastic cup of water with a straw sticking out of it. She went to hand it to Tim, but he refused to unwrap his arm from Abby's waist. Abby took it from her, grinning at Tim's flash of possessiveness as she held it so he could take a sip. The first sip felt like it was all soaked up by the dryness of his mouth; the second trickled down his sore throat. Finally it felt like he might be able to say something.

"We had to perform an arterial graft in your shoulder to repair the damage, Agent McGee. We took a section of artery from your leg to bridge the gap left by the bullet. We've had to totally immobilise your shoulder for now; we'll reduce the dressings in a few days, but we need to make sure that the graft is holding before we do that. And we've still got you on supplementary oxygen" now McGee knew what was uncomfortable across his face; oxygen prongs "but we'll look at stopping that later today. If you improve at your current rate, we may be able to move you to a regular room tomorrow"

He made some notations on the chart at the end of McGee's bed, then turned to leave. "Oh, if you experience any dizziness or nausea, please let us know straight away. We had you very heavily sedated overnight, and you may have a few side effects"

Left alone with Abby again, he was fighting to keep his eyes open. He was so tired. He pulled her closer and dropped a kiss on her hair

"Love you, Abs" he managed to croak out. The last thing he heard before falling asleep again was her heartfelt response

"I love you too, Tim"

...

When she was certain he was asleep, she gingerly unwound his arm from around her waist and exited his room. She didn't want to leave him, but she had to make some phone calls. She wasn't allowed to use her cell phone in the ICU, so she went into the waiting room down the hall to the payphone. She checked the time; 7.15am. Gibbs and the team would be at the office by now. She called Gibbs' cell, knowing that he would tell Tony and Ziva the good news.

"Yeah, Gibbs" came the familiar two word answer. Fleetingly, she wondered if he had answered the phone like that when his wives had called him

"Gibbs, it's Abby"

"Abs" she could hear his voice change as he focused on her phone call. He'd never admit, but he cared about his team as if they were his children "Is everything ok?"

"He woke up, Gibbs! For a few minutes anyway, he's gone back to sleep again now but it's a normal sleep, not the drugs this time and- "  
"Abby" Gibbs broke in on her excited rambling

"Sorry Gibbs. He woke up. Dr Reilly said they might move him to a normal room tomorrow"

"That's good news, Abs. Thanks" Gibbs cut off. Used to his abrupt method of ending phone calls, Abby shrugged and moved to the next call on her list. Tim's parents.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: This chapter is kinda filler, almost, but some of it is important filler.**

**Two updates in 12 hours. I'm not going too fast for you guys am I? F.**

Gibbs snapped his cell phone shut and looked around. Tony and Ziva were sitting silently at their desks, watching him intently. He knew they must have overheard his conversation with Abby

"McGee's awake" he told them bluntly, watching the simultaneous looks of relief wash over their faces. Tony was the first to speak, as usual

"Boss, can we go see him?"

"Later, DiNozzo" In a softer tone, he explained "Abby said he was only awake for a few minutes, Tony"

Silently he resolved to send Tony and Ziva over to the hospital later, provided they didn't get bogged down with a case anytime soon. Balboa's team could cover for them.

By mid morning, they still hadn't been called out on a case, and Gibbs' patience was wearing thin. Tony and Ziva had gotten nothing accomplished all day, and he could tell their minds were on the youngest member of the team. Finally he caved, calling Vance to let him know that he was dismissing his team for the day. He was glad to be able to report that McGee was improving.

"DiNozzo, David, grab your gear" he called. He inwardly smiled at the look of rebellion that crossed their faces; clearly they thought they'd gotten a case. He'd tell them once they were downstairs.

...

Their unexpected dismissal had sent Tony and Ziva on a beeline back to Bethesda. The events of the day before had brought back painful memories for both of them; they'd lost friends, partners before. But neither of them had ever faced the loss of someone they'd worked with for this long before. The team had been together for a long time now; they weren't colleagues, they were family.

They walked down the hallway towards McGee's room, hoping that they would find him awake. Abby saw them coming

"Hey guys!" she called out, coming up to them

"How is he, Abby?" Tony asked

"So much better, Tony. He's awake at the moment, they kicked me out so they could do whatever it is they've gotta do. They're taking him off the oxygen, but he's still pretty groggy. Keeps falling asleep"

He studied Abby's face while she talked. She looked paler than usual, and drawn

"Abs, have you eaten at all since yesterday?" he broke in

She took a moment to think about it, then shook her head "I don't want to leave him alone, Tony" she explained.

"Fine, how about you go with Ziva and find the cafeteria or something? I'll sit in with him" he offered. He had something to return to McGee, and he didn't want Abby anywhere nearby while he did

Ziva had to practically drag Abby away, but soon the coast was clear. He checked with the nurses' station to make sure first, then entered McGee's room.

McGee was still in the same half sitting, half lying position he'd been in when they'd left last night. Tony figured it had something to do with stopping pressure from being put on his shoulder. His eyes were closed, but they slowly opened as he heard someone enter. Tony walked over and sat down in the uncomfortable seat that passed as the visitors chair

"Welcome back Probie, you gave us quite a scare"

"Thanks Tony"

"Seriously, Tim, I'm glad you're ok. Thought we were going to lose you for a while there"

"Not this time, Tony" McGee brushed it off. "How long was I out for?"

"About 18 hours"

McGee winced at the answer. It could have been worse, he supposed. At least he hadn't missed their anniversary completely, but his plans were definitely ruined. That brought a question to mind

"Hey, who has my stuff?" he asked, half dreading the answer

"I gave it to Abby. Well, most of it. Gibbs has your badge and sidearm. And I held on to this." He pulled the velvet box out of his pocket.

"Figured you wanted to give it to Abby yourself". He held it out to Tim who took it with a sigh of relief and stashed it under his pillow. He knew it wasn't the safest of hiding spots but he didn't have a lot of choice right now.

"You must be planning on asking her soon if you're carrying that with you" Tony observed

"Well it was supposed to be tonight, but... I'm a little worried Tony. What if it's too soon?"

Tony snorted. "This from the guy who asked her to move in after what-2 days?"

McGee gave him a sheepish grin.

"Actually Tony, it was one day"

Tony burst out laughing.

"You guys are crazy, you know that Probie? You dance around each other for seven years, move in together before you even have your first date, and 3 months later get engaged!"

The humorous side of their odd courtship had never really occurred to Tim before. He joined in DiNozzo's laughter for a minute, then told Tony to quit making him laugh. It made his shoulder ache like crazy.

"You really love her, don't you?" Tony asked. He was going to brush him off; he wasn't really comfortable discussing that aspect of his life with Tony, but something in the seriousness of DiNozzo's tone made him reply honestly

"Yeah, Tony, I do"

Movement at the door caught his eye; he glanced over and saw Abby and Ziva in the doorway. He wondered how much of their conversation Abby had overheard; hopefully not too much. He studied her face for a moment. Seeing a tender smile but no surprise, he concluded that she hadn't heard Tony's comment about them being crazy. He greeted Ziva as the women crowded into the small room.

"Slow day, huh?"

"Yeah, Balboa's team is covering for us" Tony answered

One of the bossier nurses put her head around the door then, sternly reminding them of the 2 visitors at a time rule. Abby volunteered to go, to Tim's disgust. It was their anniversary; he wanted to spend it with her even if he was tied to this damn hospital bed. He reminded himself that he would have her to himself later. He hadn't decided yet if he was still going to ask her to marry him tonight, or if he would wait until he could do it properly.

"Probie? You still with us?" Tony's voice recalled his attention

"Sorry, zoned out for a minute there" he was getting tired again. He remembered something from the day before that he wanted to ask Ziva. It was a small thing but it was bugging him slightly

"Hey Ziva?"

"Yes, McGee?"

"Yesterday, when all this happened... I heard two double taps. One was Gibbs; it was too close to be anyone else. Who was the other?"

"It was Tony. I did not have a clear shot" she explained "I may threaten to kill him sometimes, but I truly could not shoot Tony in the back"

That set McGee laughing again. The ache from his shoulder and the laughter soon tired him out completely, and he fell asleep again


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm still not sure if I like this chapter, but it does work. Sort of. After 2 rewrites, I kinda gave up. F.**

This time when he woke up, he felt more alert, more normal. He guessed the last of the sedatives they'd given him were finally wearing off. Clear thought was returning, which was relaxing. He may not always be able to express what he was thinking, but he'd always been able to think clearly. The chemical induced fuzziness wasn't to his taste. Neither was the constant falling asleep.

He slid his free hand up under his pillow, making sure the velvet box hasn't gone missing in this latest bout of sleep. He'd almost had a heart attack when Tony had told him he'd given his things to Abby. He'd thought for a moment that for once in his life, Tony hadn't pried into other people's things, and so hadn't seen the box. He never thought he'd be grateful for DiNozzo's nosiness, but in this instance, he was.

Now, what did he do with the ring? The old fashioned romantic in him told him to wait until he got out of this hospital, out of the many layers of bandages that was stopping him from moving, so he could get down on one knee and ask the scariest question a man could ever ask a woman. It was the same side of him that had led him to ask permission of both Abby's father and Gibbs.

The other side of him demanded that he do this now, tonight. Sure, it wouldn't be the most romantic of proposals, but it would be memorable. He wasn't given to acting on impulse, at least most of the time, but he had to admit that when it came to Abby, acting on impulse worked. Tony had called him crazy for it earlier, but it was what had made him ask her to move in with him so quickly. He was still occasionally shocked that she'd agreed.

Doubt was niggling at him again. He knew that Abby loved him; he had no doubt of that. But he knew that Abby had problems with commitment, even if they rarely showed these days. He sighed, brushing the doubts aside once more, telling himself that it was normal. The word 'no' probably haunted every man in this situation.

Back to his original problem. What did he do with the ring now? Part of him was annoyed that his plans had been destroyed. He'd waited seven years to do this, and he really wanted to do it once and once only. Why couldn't the universe cut him a break and let him do it his way?

The entrance of a nurse, coming to check his vital signs again, broke into his musing. They never told him what they were writing down on his chart, but he assumed it was good news by the way they kept taking machines away. It occurred to him that for the first time since he woken up, he was alone. Where was Abby? He hoped she was out getting food, or some much needed sleep. She'd dodged the question when he'd asked her before, but he got the distinct impression that she'd barely slept the night before.

He forced himself to focus on his question. If he was going to do this tonight, he had to make up his mind fast. He couldn't see a clock anywhere, but judging by the light coming through the window, it was edging towards late afternoon. He was running out of time.

...

Once Tim had faded back off to sleep, Tony and Ziva left his room quietly. Abby was waiting for them in the hallway

"He's asleep?" she asked in a hushed voice. At their nods, she sighed a little. "Come on" she insisted, linking arms with them and tugging them along with her. "I need some food"

They headed down a floor to the cafeteria, finding some edible looking food and a table to sit at. Despite her insistence that she was hungry, Abby merely picked at her food, looking troubled.

"He will be ok, Abs" Tony reassured her. She looked up quickly at that

"I know, Tony." Her voice was sad

"Abby"

"What if he wasn't, Tony? What if he'd died, the way Kate did? I don't know if I can do this on my own"

"Abby, Probie is the least likely of any of us to get hurt. This is the first time he's been badly hurt since he joined the team"

He studied her face as he spoke. Something was wrong, off. This wasn't just the panic of almost losing someone you loved; he'd felt that when Ziva was in Somalia. This was something else. A suspicion popped into his head

"Do what on your own?" Ziva asked

Cutting across her, Tony voiced his sudden thought

"Abby, are you pregnant?" he knew it was abrupt, but it had to be asked

She nodded slowly, looking a little scared

"Does McGee know?" he heard Ziva's question from beside him

Abby shook her head "I'd only just finished running the blood test when Ducky came and got me yesterday" she explained

"You need to tell him, Abs" Tony's voice was serious.

"I know, Tony. I just don't know how"

...

Abby went slowly back into Tim's room. Hopefully he was awake again now; Tony was right. She really needed to talk to him.

Seeing that he was awake and looking for her, she clambered on to the bed, lying beside him and resting her head on his good shoulder. Always able to read her mood, he gently tilted her head up, making her look at him

"Abs, what's wrong?"

The love and worry in his face brought tears to her eyes.

"I thought you'd been killed, Tim". He didn't reply, sensing that reassurances wasn't what she was looking for right now

"I know you have a dangerous job, and I've always worried when the team goes out in to the field. It's hard when you're stuck back at the office, you never know if you guys are all going to come back in one piece. But this was different, Tim. This is the first time that you've been hurt since we started dating. I don't know how to handle this" She turned her face into his chest, muffling her sobs against him

He stroked her hair, not knowing quite what to say.

"Abby, I can't promise that I'm always going to come back safely; you're right, I have a dangerous job. But I can promise you that I'm always going to try to be safe. I want to be able to come home with you every night, not wake up in hospitals"

"Tony said that you're the safest of the field agents"

He considered that for a second

"Yeah Abs, I probably am. I don't spend as much time out in the field as the rest of the team; Gibbs always has me working with you, or up in MTAC, or something like that" He paused. "I'm sorry I scared you, Abs"

She gave a watery sniff, sitting up again. "Hell of a way to spend our anniversary, Tim" she gave him a lopsided smile.

He nodded "I had dinner reservations... and something I wanted to ask you. This isn't the right place to do this, but" she was watching him with a quizzical expression on her face. He took a deep breath, pulled out the velvet box and said the scary words

"Abigail Scuito... will you marry me?"


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Really short one this time guys, but I had to leave it there. I'll have the next chapter up soon, I promise. F**

"_Will you marry me?"_

The words seemed to echo in the quiet room. She stared at him in shock for a moment. Her first response was disbelief. Was he serious? Then suspicion set in. Knowing Tim, she wouldn't put it past him to propose on some sort of chivalrous impulse, which led her to one conclusion. He knew about the baby. But how?

"How do you know?" she asked, her voice sounding strangely unlike her "I mean, Tony knows but he only just found out so he couldn't have told you, and I only just found out for sure myself. But obviously you know somehow, so how do you know?" Stress and surprise made her babble, the same way she always did. She watched him, seeing intense hurt, confusion and bewilderment cross his face in turn. Bewilderment? Maybe she'd jumped to the wrong conclusion

"Or don't you know?" she asked

Exasperated, he sighed. "Abby, I don't even know what you're talking about. What is it that I'm supposed to know?"

"You really don't know?" she pressed "This isn't some chivalrous impulse? You just...want to marry me?"

He was incredibly confused now. Why else would he ask her?

"Abs, the only reason I asked you to marry me is because I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you" he assured her. The cloud of suspicion slowly lifted from her eyes, replaced by joy and welling tears.

"Then yes, Tim. I'll marry you"

He grabbed her, pulling her as close as his damaged shoulder would allow, kissing her deeply. She leaned into the kiss for a few minutes, and then pulled away, mindful of the pressure being put on his injury. Grinning shyly, he took the ring out of the box and slid it onto her finger, fumbling a little at having to use his left hand. She snuggled into his chest, so he wrapped his good arm around her and held her tenderly, feeling a deep contentment spread over him. Even his shoulder didn't ache so much

He lost track of time as he held her. Eventually her words at his proposal began to niggle at him. What had she been talking about? Something about chivalry?

"Abs?" he asked

She raised her head and looked at him. She looked so happy; he smiled at the sight of her. He couldn't help it. He'd spent the best part of a month grinning like a madman when they'd started dating, and he was even happier now than he'd been then. He hadn't thought that was possible before this. He shook his head slightly, getting his train of thought back on track

"What is it that Tony knows, and you know, but that you were so sure that I'd found out?" he knew it was a convoluted sentence, but he really didn't have any idea how else to put it

"Oh" she looked a little unsure of herself, nervous somehow. She looked down, fidgeting with the bed sheet. "Do you remember a couple of months ago, the Halloran case?"

He nodded as memories came flooding back. They'd only been dating for 3 weeks or so, and the Halloran case had taken him out of town for 4 days. Her welcome home had been... enthusiastic.

"Well, we weren't exactly careful"

"Abby, are you...?"

"Yeah, Timmy. I'm pregnant. And I'm sorry I reacted the way I did, I thought that you'd found out and that was why you were asking me to marry you"

He didn't know whether to be amused or offended at that. He went with amused. "Baby or not, I'd still want to marry you" he told her fervently. He got another kiss for that

He laid his hand across her still flat middle. "We're going to have a baby" he said softly, a mix of joy and wonder on his face. She covered his hand with her own, smiling tenderly.

After a few minutes, he spoke again.

"Tony knows?" She nodded, then heard his quick inhalation of breath. With a tinge of fear in his voice, he asked

"Does Gibbs know?"


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Short, but I needed the break for emphasis. I'll post more hopefully later tonight-F**

The apprehension in his voice was almost comical, to her anyway. She had no fear of Gibbs; to her he was more like a father than anything. But she knew it was different for Tim, and for Tony as well. Fear probably wasn't the right word; they weren't scared of Gibbs. But intimidated; that they were. She knew that Tim had stood up to Gibbs about their relationship- technically they'd broken Rule 12-and she also knew that he'd been surprised at Gibbs' reaction. Apart from one very short conversation, Gibbs had pretty much totally ignored the situation. They'd done their best not to let their relationship interfere with work, but that was going to end.

As much as she hated to admit it, her pregnancy was going to mean a lot of changes. For starters, she was going to have to slow down; no more all nighters. And she was going to have to stop using some of the chemicals she used in testing, in case they harmed the baby. As she got further along, there was going to be things that she just physically wouldn't be able to do anymore, such as ballistics testing. She might have to get an assistant. She made a face. The only person that she'd ever worked with on a regular basis without wanting to kill them was her new fiancé, and somehow she doubted that Gibbs would want to lose a field agent for the next few months.

Suddenly she realised that Tim was still waiting for an answer.

She shook her head. "I only found out for sure yesterday, Tim, how could he know?"

"Because it's Gibbs?" he reminded her. "Besides, you said Tony knows"

"Tony guessed" she told him. Realisation dawned

"Oh"

"Yeah; if Tony guessed, I wouldn't bet on it that Gibbs doesn't know. We've gotta tell him tonight, Abs. He found out about us by accident, I'd really rather we told him this"

"Told me what, McGee?" the voice of their boss came from the doorway

...

They both startled, McGee wincing involuntarily as the movement jarred his shoulder. Neither of them had seen or heard Gibbs' approach. Abby shot McGee a look that clearly said "How long was he standing there?" He shrugged his good shoulder in reply

"Hey Gibbs" Abby said brightly.

He wasn't fooled for a second; he'd seen that look on Abby's face many times, and it usually meant she was up to something. McGee looked a little guilty also. Gibbs' eyes narrowed as he took in the scene before him. Something was different between these two. Knowing what Tony had returned to McGee when he'd regained consciousness, he drew his own conclusions.

He knew this day was coming anyway, he'd known it for a month. Ever since McGee had shown up in his basement in the middle of the night after a tough case. He'd been nervous and stuttering, a return to his previous lack of self confidence. He'd wondered what was wrong, but had done his best to put the young agent at ease. He'd been pleasantly surprised, and a little touched, when McGee had asked his permission to propose to Abby. He'd granted it, even though he knew full well that McGee had already sought her father's permission. Truth be told, McGee didn't need anyone's permission other than Abby's, but Gibbs appreciated the show of respect. As McGee had left, Gibbs hadn't been able to resist asking him the question that had been in his mind through the whole conversation

"What would you have done if I hadn't said yes, McGee?"

McGee had shrugged "Asked her anyway, Boss. But thanks, this'll mean a lot to Abby"

He was a far cry from the green kid that had mooned over Abby when they first met, that was for sure.

Recalling his attention to the present, Gibbs focused on the pair in front of him

"Got something to tell me, you two?" he asked

They exchanged glances again

"Abby and I are getting married, Boss" McGee couldn't contain the grin any longer. Gibbs smiled at that; he remembered how he felt when Shannon had agreed to marry him. He just hoped these two had a happier ending.

He took the necessary two steps to the bed and grasped Tim's hand, shaking it

"Congratulations, both of you" he hugged Abs, kissing her lightly on the cheek. She smiled, but interrupted him

"Wait, Gibbs, there's more"

He raised a quizzical eyebrow. There was more?

"I'm pregnant"


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's note no. 1: This is the last chapter, guys. Sorry about the ending of the previous one, I originally wrote this chapter and the previous chapter as one really long one, but this part needed rewriting.**

**I'm going to try and limit myself to one WIP at a time from now on; writing two is truly doing my head in lol. F**

'Pregnant?' His first reaction was fury, so strong that it almost blinded him. It was irrational, he knew that deep down; these two were well and truly adults. But no man likes to think of his daughter having sex, and that's how he thought of Abby

"You're what?" he snapped out. He saw Abby quail a little at the look on his face, and McGee instinctively go to protect her. He was stopped by his injuries, leaning back against the pillows wincing.

"Gibbs" the tone of McGee's voice was a warning, and that more than anything steadied him. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

"You'd better not be telling me that that's the reason you're getting married" he ground out

Abby shook her head mutely, taking a step backwards, closer to the bed.  
"Boss, Abby only found out yesterday that she's pregnant. I found out less than an hour ago" McGee explained, looking him straight in the eye "And for the record, she told me after I asked her to marry me, not before." The sincerity in the younger man's eyes and voice dispelled the last of his irrational anger.

"When's the baby due?" he asked in a milder tone

"Around mid January" Abby replied. She sounded a little shaky, which made him feel bad for yelling at her. McGee took her hand, squeezing it gently in reassurance, and threw Gibbs a dirty look for having upset her. He refrained from glaring back; he felt he deserved that one. He was at a bit of a loss as to what to say. 'Congratulations' sounded hollow after he'd just snapped at them both. He was relieved when Ziva appeared in the doorway, breaking the awkward silence

Abby quickly bore her off down the hallway, eager to share the news with her friend, leaving Gibbs alone with McGee. He pulled the visitors chair over and sat down

"Scared, Tim?" he asked

"Terrified, Boss" McGee admitted. "What if we screw this up?"

It was the age old question. Gibbs had asked himself that one.

"You're not going to screw it up, Tim. You and Abby will be just fine" McGee flashed him a grateful smile. They relapsed into silence for a few moments. Then

"Going to have to find an assistant for Abby that she can work with, though" Gibbs mused

McGee gave a short laugh

"Good luck with that one, Boss"

He snorted "Yeah, you're right". They both remembered Chip, her ill fated assistant of many years ago. Of course, he was a crazy scumbag who had tried to frame Tony, but even before they knew that, she still didn't work well with him.

"Well, we've got a few weeks to find one she can cope with"

McGee gave him a questioning look. Gibbs knew as well as he did that Abby would have to stop using some vital chemicals now, not in a few weeks time

"Solves the question of what I'm going to do with you til you're passed fit for field work again. Palmer can help her until you get out of here" he explained. He saw the worried frown lift from McGee's face. Clearly, that solution hadn't occurred to him

"Thanks, Boss". He didn't explain what for, but Gibbs understood.

Soon an excited Abby returned with not just Ziva, but Tony and Ducky in her wake. From their expressions, it was clear that Abby had told them all the good news. They crowded around the bed, congratulating the happy couple. Gibbs took a step back, letting the new arrivals have their turn. He caught the loving look that passed between Tim and Abby, and allowed himself a smile.

They were going to be just fine.

**Author's note no. 2: So what did you think? Sequel? **


End file.
